"Today’s action is the latest installment of a long-running campaign to establish FCC control of the internet. This is a politically-motivated reversal of prior law, not an exercise in evidence-based rulemaking. There is no evidence of a problem to be solved.
"We have a national interest in preserving a dynamic, innovative internet. Consumers were able to work and learn from home during the pandemic because broadband providers were free to invest in and improve their networks without the drag of public utility regulation. Public utilities are notorious for chronic underinvestment and glacial innovation. The FCC’s action uses our nation’s aging utilities and crumbling infrastructure as the model for today’s internet.
"Moreover, the FCC’s marketplace intrusion comes at the worst possible time for our massive national effort to finally close the digital divide – just as billions in federal funding are dedicated to extending internet access to America’s unserved communities. Instead of clearing obstacles to speed broadband deployment where it is most needed, this ill-timed and unlawful order threatens to hinder progress. This will not deliver net neutrality; it will risk a net fatality.
"The good news is that the FCC’s action will be overturned in court. Congress has always been the appropriate forum to resolve these issues. We can only hope that the damage done to our vibrant internet ecosystem in the meantime will be limited."